


Post-Meteor Birthday

by sanctum_c



Series: Aerith Month 2018 [18]
Category: Final Fantasy VII (Video Game 1997)
Genre: Birthday, Gen, No Dialogue, Post-Canon, bits of Advent Children
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-07
Updated: 2018-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:14:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28057458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sanctum_c/pseuds/sanctum_c
Summary: The events of one particular birthday for Aeris in the post-Meteor world.
Relationships: AVALANCHE & Aerith Gainsborough
Series: Aerith Month 2018 [18]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2009521





	Post-Meteor Birthday

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the prompt 'Birthday'.

For the first years, from age seven to fourteen, Aeris's birthday had always involved Elmyra getting time off work to spend with her daughter. This took some getting used to; afterall it was not as if the labs ever celebrated her birthdays. At least not officially. On a few years, some of the kinder techs took the pains to slip her a cupcake on the relevant day, and her mother would always do what she could with what they had. The slums were a definite step-up. There was always a cake, always presents and usually a party – all the other kids in the neighborhood Aeris knew to greater or lesser degrees invited. Her teenage years saw changes as money became tighter; prices rose and Elmyra’s wages no longer stretched quite as far; a contributing factor to Aeris’s own flower selling business. She understood the situation well enough – even if she had resented the reductions at the time. Still a cake, but Elmyra would restrict her celebrations to the evening, and a good proportion of those neighborhood kids were either gone or considered enemies now.

When she entered her twenties, birthdays seemed to lose the former special delight. Aeris was not jaded like some older fictional characters always seemed to be; nor was she afflicted with a crushing sense of life slipping away. Instead Aeris let the relevant day arrive and pass without much fuss. There was often still at least a present and - if it had been a good month - cake. No neighborhood kids these days and no time for parties. Maturity or the unavoidable conclusion based on current circumstances?

No adult – or at least no one in her friendship group – got birthday parties in the post-Mako world. Too much to do, too many places to be while they struggled to keep something akin to the life of the pre-Meteor days going. Only this time, they had to do so without the Mako. The leech-like reactors had been essential to life and must not be any longer - though there were days when Aeris could not help but wonder if a slower progression from one power-source to another might have been more sensible or at least more comfortable. Bad thoughts; the dark implications of Mako processing were too queasy to allow to continue.

Maybe one day she could have another party; a proper gathering of her friends and family. For now it was at least enough to see them all. She had missed the chance on her first trip across the Planet to have an impromptu celebration in one of the inns they stayed at. Based on other gatherings of the full Avalanche membership it would have resulted in a raucous good time for all involved. For this birthday at least, by a fortunate sequence of events, the entirety of Avalanche would be in Junon for at least a few hours. But not everyone at the same time annoyingly.

Cloud and Tifa were first at a painful time of day. Six-thirty am was not a time that should exist full-stop, but it was the point when Cloud was passing through on his way over to Gongaga. He stayed a scant few minutes after an extended hug; Tifa remained behind to spend a few hours with Aeris before she needed to get on with the business concerns that brought her here. Tempting to slope back to bed for a little while, but once Tifa offered to make breakfast while Aeris showered, it would be madness to turn down such an offer.

Still difficult to stop yawning – even after three cups of coffee – but Aeris persevered. Breakfast consumed and coffee imbibed, there was just enough time for Tifa and Aeris to meet-up with Barret on his way in for a meeting with the WRO energy board. Tifa went off to see someone about a cache of spirits turned up recently while Aeris and Barret called up Marlene and Mom back in Kalm. Marlene was admittedly more excited by the imminent visit of her father, but with only a little hinting from Barret she remembered to wish Aeris happy birthday. Aeris promised to visit her again when she could. Mom apologised for not being able to make the trip; Aeris insisted it was fine and they would see each other soon enough.

Barret left for his meeting an hour before her next visitor. Maybe bed would be a good idea? No time; Cid and Shera turned up early. The pair were not due until later this evening, but (ironically) high winds around Wutai had cut short an intended run over to the continent. Cid was still Cid; not much about him seemed capable of change. He slipped in yet another veiled urging for the WRO to consider space-flight again. Same conversation they had every other time they ran into each other. And inevitably Aeris promised to pass that request on too – not that she had much sway with these kinds of things. Shera had no such agenda and was merely happy to see her. She brought a present too; a miniature model of the Highwind. Hard not to smile at this being the closest she ever came to flying on it. There had been many airship trips; but never one on the Highwind, certainly not now after its recycling into a new craft.

Vincent turned up with worrying precision – or early according to Aeris’s watch. His considered opinion on that detail was that her battery was wearing out. Nice to see him, even if among all of them, he remained the most distant and stiff. Tempting to at least try and embarrass him with a hug, but she let him slope off without it. His desire to be away was no surprise given Yuffie should arrive around same time – and he was still keen on avoiding her. Perhaps he really had been early? No time for that; the Wutai princess was here complete with a wide, wide range of gossip, stories and intrigue. Yuffie was somewhat freer with her time than the others and somehow Aeris found herself paying for lunch.

Nanaki arrived part-way through. Of them all, he had made the most specific effort to visit for the day; and despite Aeris’s insistence he was under no obligation to do so, he maintained his intention to see her. At least he was able to keep her company for the rest of the day rather than immediately chartering another transport all the way back to Cosmo Canyon. Yuffie vanished off for some errand or other leaving them to a quiet afternoon. Nanaki was as easy to talk to as always; he related what was happening with his home and listened to Aeris about her time here. She offered him the chance to accompany her to dinner, but Nanaki demurred. The evening meal should have been Aeris, Reeve, Cid and Shera, but the earlier arrival of the latter pair meant it was just the two of them in Reeve’s apartment.

Reeve insisted on apologising through the meal – he repeatedly insisted the wine was no sign of any expectations or even thoughts in such a direction. Aeris replied she didn't mind, shrugged and they shared the bottle. Not that Reeve even seemed to have time for a relationship; he close to collapse with leadership duties. The pause for this dinner was something of a hole in his sleep schedule from what Yuffie had been saying. To that end they caught up on WRO stuff, Reeve wished her happy birthday, then Aeris left early, insisting he take the opportunity to get a bit more sleep than normal.

She wandered home happy and content. Not the typical kind of birthday, but more than enough. One final tradition when the day drew to a close; mother told her once she was born at a quarter to midnight. Aeris stayed up until the same moment to witness the moment her years on the Planet ticked over. Only then did she finally retire to bed.


End file.
